Transcription

1 September 25, 2012

2

3 Health Impact There is no safe level of exposure to tobacco smoke Report of the Surgeon General (2010) Secondhand smoke (SHS) can have 80-90% of the health impact of chronic smoking (J. Barnoya, MD, MPH (2005)) Economic Impact Reduce property owners/managers maintenance and turnover costs Reduce health care and loss of life costs Reduce insurance premiums Limit liability for owners/managers Increasing demand for smoke-free housing Safety Impact Reduce risk of residential fire

4 No Smoking Light Smoking Heavy Smoking General Cleaning $240 $500 $720 Paint $170 $225 $480 Flooring $50 $950 $1,425 Appliances $60 $75 $490 Bathroom $40 $60 $400 TOTAL $560 $1,810 $3,515

5 Health SHS exposure levels in outdoor areas, such as parks and beaches, can be comparable to SHS exposure levels indoors. (Source: Kleipes, NE, Real-time measurement of outdoor tobacco smoke particles, Journal of the Air and Waste Management Association (2007)). SHS exposure is particularly harmful to infants and young children, because their immune systems are still developing Nearly all MD counties ban tobacco use on school grounds to limit youth exposure, but children still exposed to SHS at: Playgrounds Ballfields Beaches Recreation areas and, Other public common areas

6 Environment Cigarette Butts/Packaging Most prevalent form of litter found in parks and beaches nearly 80% of cigarette butts enter into human water systems Cellulose acetate filter is not biodegradable Commonly ingested by wildlife Risk of Fire Lighted tobacco products among the leading causes of brush, grass and forest fires approximately 10,000 fires each year Cultural Smoking in parks/beaches sends message that smoking is ok to youth Outdoor recreation areas are intended to promote fitness, healthy outdoor living etc., - smoking contradicts this message

7 NO CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHT TO SMOKE Proponents of smokers rights often argue that smoke-free laws or policies: Violate an individual s constitutional right to privacy; or Discriminate against smokers in violation of the Equal Protection Clause All courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court, considering the issue have found: Smoking is not a protected liberty, and Smokers are not a protected class of people Important Note: The Maryland state constitution provides broader protections than the federal constitution; however, no state court has found smoking to be a constitutionally protected right.

8 NO FEDERAL LAW PROHIBITS SMOKE-FREE LAWS All 50 states (and the District of Columbia), including Maryland, have the authority to enact smoke-free housing laws No federal or state law prohibits an owner, property manager or housing authority from making their apartment building smoke-free

9 STATE GOVERNMENT The Maryland General Assembly has the authority to enact smoke-free multiunit housing and smoke-free outdoor area laws Supremacy Clause establishes that the U.S. Constitution and federal laws are the supreme law of the land. This means any state law that conflicts with federal law is preempted. No federal law prevents MD from enacting smoke-free laws The Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act (2009) expressly preempts or prevents state legislatures from enacting any law which is different from, or in addition to federal laws relating to: Cigarette or smokeless tobacco labeling or the content of advertising Tobacco product standards Tobacco manufacturing standards Misbranding, adulteration or modified risk tobacco products

10 Sec Preservation of State and Local Authority. Nothing shall be construed to limit the authority of a State or political subdivision of a State to enact, adopt, promulgate, and enforce any law, rule, regulation or other measure with respect to tobacco products that is in addition to, or more stringent than, requirements established under this chapter, including a law, rule, regulation or other measure relating to or prohibiting the sale, distribution, possession, exposure to, access to, advertising and promotion of, or use of tobacco products by individuals of any age

11 COUNTY OR MUNICIPAL GOVERNMENTS No state law prevents county or municipal authorities from enacting and enforcing more stringent measures to protect Maryland residents from involuntary exposure to secondhand smoke. Local governments may adopt smoke-free legislation unless it contradicts or is inconsistent with a state smoke-free law. The only state law regulating smoking is the Maryland Clean Indoor Air Act of 2007 (CIA). The CIA prohibits smoking in indoor areas open to the public, but does not regulate smoking in outdoor public areas. In addition, the law expressly permits county and municipal governments to adopt additional measures to reduce involuntary exposure to environmental tobacco smoke. MD. CODE ANN. HEALTH-GEN ;

12 Exception: Commissioner Counties Commissioners in non-home rule counties (St. Mary s and Calvert) may not legislate on local matters without prior consent from the General Assembly. County commissioners do have the authority to regulate conduct on county property (includes county beaches, parks and recreation areas) Note: Incorporated cities and towns may still adopt smoke-free laws, including: Leonardtown La Plata Indian Head Port Tobacco Village Chesapeake Beach North Beach

13 PROPERTY OWNERS/MANAGERS Property owners and managers, condominium associations and public housing authorities can prohibit smoking in individual units as well as indoor and outdoor common areas PHAs/SECTION 8/SUBSIDIZED HOUSING Section 8 properties, public housing, or other government subsidized affordable housing units can prohibit smoking by changing the house rules or amending leases The right to smoke or not to smoke is not a right that is protected under the Civil Rights Act of 1964 because smokers a not a protected class under federal law. U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development

14 Parks and Recreation Department Charles County Parks and Recreation prohibit smoking in all county parks, within 100 yards of any organized activity County Commissioners (all county property) County Board of Education (all school property) Charles County smoking prohibited on school grounds at all times St. Mary s County - Sale or use of tobacco in any form is prohibited by anyone at all times in all St. Mary s County Public School buildings and vehicles, and on all school grounds whether owned or leased

15 Total or Partial Ban State/local governments have the authority to prohibit smoking in market-rate, subsidized and public housing, as well as prohibit smoking in c0unty or municipal parks, beaches and recreation areas. Legislative bans can prohibit smoking in one or more of the following areas: Residential Units Balconies/Patios Outdoor Common Areas Parks, beaches and recreation areas All county/city property Alternatively, several smoke-free ordinances require a certain percentage of multi-unit housing to be smoke-free Jurisdiction with Smoke-Free MUH Ordinance Pasadena, CA Ordinance No prohibited smoking in individual units, patios/balconies, common areas, etc. (effective 9/4/13) Bowie, MD prohibits smoking on all city property

16 Nuisance Statute Creates private right of action in limited circumstances for residents repeatedly exposed to tobacco smoke drift in the home. HB 1224 would have added secondhand smoke to the list of nuisances included in the Maryland Code, but the bill failed to make it out of committee. Utah Code 78B A nuisance under this part includes tobacco smoke that drifts into any residential unit a person rents, leases, or owns, from another residential or commercial unit and the smoke: (a) Drifts in more than once in each of two or more consecutive seven-day periods; and (b) is injurious to health, indecent, offensive to the senses, or an obstruction to the free use of property, so as to interfere with the comfortable enjoyment of life or property The law allows an individual to bring suit against: 1) the individual creating the nuisance; 2) the individual that rents the offending property; or 3) the owner of the offending property. The law provides no cause of action for drifting smoke if the rental agreement or restrictive covenant states that smoking is allowed in other units and that smoke from those units may drift into the unit.

17 Disclosure Law Mandatory landlord disclosure laws require property owners and managers to notify prospective tenants, in writing, whether smoking is allowed on the premises. Also, smoking policy must be part of the lease. Owners/managers must inform prospective residents whether: Smoking is prohibited on the entire property Smoking is permitted on the entire property; or Smoking is permitted in designated or limited areas of the property (e.g. residential units, outdoor common areas, patios/balconies) Owners/managers not required to restrict smoking or protect residents from secondhand smoke Jurisdictions with disclosure laws: Maine, Oregon, Utah

18 Express Grant for Owners/Managers to Adopt Smoke-Free Policies Authorizes the owner or manager of a residential dwelling unit to prohibit the smoking of tobacco products on the property, in a dwelling unit, in another interior or exterior area, or on the premises on which the dwelling unit is located Smoke-free policies are already legal, but owners/managers often choose not to adopt them out of fear of lawsuits Owners/managers adopting smoke-free policies must abide by state landlord-tenant law (e.g. tenant notice or amend terms at end of lease) California SB 332 (signed into law 9/6/2011): Allows owners/managers to ban smoking anywhere on the premises, including individual units; and Requires all new leases to include, in writing, the smoking policy of the building

19 Legislative Inaction Partisan politics prevents the passage of smoke-free laws in Maryland Ex. Maryland 2012 General Assembly Session disagreements on balancing the budget paralyzed almost all other activity Belief by public health advocates that nothing can be accomplished in current political climate Industry Resistance Housing industry wary of time/cost involved in enforcing smoke-free policies Ex.: San Diego County Apartment Association is against a smoking ban because it will place the enforcement burden on the property owner and manager to be the smoking police. Widely held belief smoke-free policies will lead to lawsuits from smoking tenants

20 Enforcement Police departments, local health officials and landlords concerned about the labor and financial costs associated with implementing and enforcing smoke-free laws Who will respond to complaints? What evidentiary standard will be used to determine if and where SHS is coming from? Who is responsible for ensuring that an individual doesn t smoke in their unit? Awareness of Dangers of SHS in the Home Tenants, housing authorities, owners/managers, legislators, health officials, etc. often are unaware of the adverse affect SHS can have on neighbors, especially those with preexisting health conditions Ex.: Maryland PHAs, Health officers Public Opinion Majority of Individuals surveyed do not want government requiring buildings to go smoke-free

21 Smoking Behaviors: Implementation of a smoke free policy in subsidized multiunit housing has been liked to increased cessationrelated behavior among smokers including decreased cigarette consumption and increased quit rate (Pizacani et al., 2012). This study also found that self-reported indoor smoking decreased significantly from 59% pre-policy to 17% post-policy. Second Hand Smoke (SHS) Exposure: Implementation of such policies has also been shown to reduce SHS exposure among nonsmokers in the unit (Pizacani et al., 2012). Specifically, the same study found that SHS exposure was reduced from 41% pre-policy to 17% post-policy.

22 A study examining the level of SHS transfer between smoke-permitted and smoke-free living units within the same multiunit housing building found that a significant proportion of SHS found in smokepermitted units was transmitted to the building s hallways and to smoke-free units. Specifically: 29.4 μg/m³ found in smoke-permitted units 18.9 μg/m³ found in hallways 64.3% of levels found in units in which smoke-permitted units 10.2 μg/m³ found in smoke-free units 34.9% of levels found in units in which smoke-permitted units

23 William Tilburg Staff Attorney Legal Resource Center University of Maryland Carey School of Law